(Disclaimer: I don't own anything at all. So don't sue me. Please.)

A Note from the Author: So, all of your nice, positive reviews make me happy and I'll continue updating (but this doesn't mean you shouldn't continue clicking on the friendly little review button at the bottom of the page!) Hopefully my writing will improve as I get more used to it and one day, I'd like the characters to be a little less OOC. I'm taking all of your reviews to heart – like how someone said I should have longer chapters. It's been one of my concerns too, but each chapter is usually a page on Word, and that's pretty much when my creativity just shuts down (oy). But I'll be trying to work on that! I promise. Maybe I'll just update more, I don't know. Anyhoo, onwards to the story!

Chapter Two

Ryan Atwood was at a loss at what to do.

Yesterday Seth had broken the news to him and the Cohen parents that he would like to go sailing for the summer, and that he would be leaving tomorrow. Of course, Sandy and Kirsten didn't react lightly to the news, but Seth was determined and had promised to support them in their old age. Or something like that.

Ryan immediately knew it was because of Summer that Seth was getting all crazy. As Seth was packing at a furious pace in his room, Ryan casually entered and brought up the subject mid-conversation.

He regretted this immediately, because Seth began ranting. And Ranting Seth was much, much more talkative and loud than Just Plain Angry Seth. Ryan shut him up by promising to deliver the message to her. After all, Ryan wanted to enjoy his summer, dammit, especially without Marissa around to ask for forgiveness.

As much as he'd like to forgive and forget the Oliver incident and just get her barnacle-like status out of the way, he didn't really want to. Because then, they would just be right back at square one with her pestering him to get back together. If only Luke were here. But Luke was now in Canada, vacationing with his dad at some unknown hunting lodge or whatever.

Which made Ryan realize that he would be very alone this summer, with Seth gone and everything.

Shit.

And now Summer was looking at Ryan with puzzled eyes, then eyes that were just really, really angry. If looks could kill, well, Ryan would be drowned, hanged, and stuffed in a briefcase by now.

"How the fuck could that bastard do this to me?" she screamed.

"Uh… uh…" Ryan stuttered. There was a reason he didn't talk much.

"After all we've been through! After all I've done for him! He just, like, leaves on his little boat and doesn't look back?!"

Ryan was starting to believe that the myth of Summer's rage blackouts wasn't such a tall tale after all. "Maybe… maybe he didn't mean it?" he ventured.

Summer narrowed her eyes and shot him a 'look', and Ryan could see that this conversation was going nowhere fast.

"Look, I know you and Seth have your problems, and I don't know what it is this time, but could you, maybe, leave me out of it? I mean, I'm sure Seth had his reasons for leaving you behind, and –" He saw Summer lose her composure for a brief second and he felt a twinge in his chest. Damn heartburn. Acting up again.

"I – yeah, sorry, Ryan." She bit her lip.

"That's… okay." Ryan had never seen Summer apologize before. It was like there was Summer, and there were those words coming out of her mouth that were so not-Summer, and well, the combination just didn't look right, in his opinion. "Look, it's kind of boring just standing here. I'm going to go play some video games. If you want to play too, well, I'm not totally against you doing it here. Uh… with me." He looked at her with a lost expression, half-expecting her to say 'ew' and immediately leave.

And he didn't really want that.

Summer gave a small grin. "Okay, Chino. You're going to regret this because I'm going to, like, kick your ass."

The ice officially broken, Summer followed Ryan into the pool house for some awesome ninja action.